


Little Boys and Big Puppies

by Anica



Series: Hanni-verse [22]
Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: Annoyed!Hannibal, Birthday, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Post Mpreg, Puppies are Trouble, Seriously Fluffy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-12
Updated: 2014-03-12
Packaged: 2018-01-15 11:56:37
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,483
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1304005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anica/pseuds/Anica
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It had to happen sooner or later. Hanni is five and someone promised him a puppy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Little Boys and Big Puppies

**Author's Note:**

> Not Beta approved. Sorry.
> 
> Not an actual prompt, just thought we all need some fluff. And to watch Hannibal squirm.

Will Graham carried an exhausted five year old up to bed. The boy barely stirred as his clothes were removed and he was dressed in pajamas. He was tucked in and kissed, but Will couldn’t seem to make himself leave. He sat on the bed and was joined by his fiancé a moment later. 

“I can’t believe he’s five,” Will whispered when he felt a hand rest on his shoulder. 

Hannibal opened his mouth to remind him that it’s only five, but stopped. His boy is five. Soon it would be school and then he would be a teenager… Hannibal frowns. 

“He is growing at an alarming rate.” 

Will chuckles and rests his head against Hannibal’s waist. “I can’t wait to see the man he’ll become but is it wrong if I want him to stay this little forever?” 

“No,” Hannibal sighed, hand moving from Will’s shoulder to his hair, holding him firmly in place. “It’s so much easier to protect him like this. His greatest fears are animated villains and timeouts. One day he’ll need more than our touch to comfort him.” 

“You’re not helping,” Will groaned, turning his face into the smooth material of the waistcoat. 

“My apologies,” the hand in his hair began to move, petting him. He finds it comforting. “I did not mean to upset you further.” 

“I’m not upset,” he sighed, turning back to look at his son. “I’m resigned. It’s going to happen no matter what and I just want make sure I don’t forget to enjoy every bit of it. ” 

“We won’t,” Hannibal softly corrected him. 

There is a touch of green paint on the boy’s cheek and Will grinned up at Hannibal. 

“You were great today.” 

“Ah, yes,” Hannibal smiled. “One afternoon and I am reminded why I force you to volunteer on his field trip days.” 

This had been the first year that the party consisted of Hanni’s friends instead of close family friends of his fathers. Almost his whole class had come. Hannibal’s decadent desserts blew the parents away and were greatly enjoyed by the children. Will played games with them, while Hannibal did face painting at their son’s request. Most children chose dogs or cats, while the more adventures wanted tigers and butterflies. Hanni chose a dragon, causing some of the children to complain that they had changed their mind. 

At the end of the evening, Will watched with amusement as Hannibal turned down invitation after invention from parents to come paint at their children’s parties. They even offered to pay, which made Hannibal scowl at them. He calmly explained that he had a day job and at this time was not looking for extra income. 

“The children were fine,” Will laughed as he got up from the bed. “It’s the parents you couldn’t stand.” 

“Very true,” Hannibal agreed with a smile and bent down to kiss the boy. 

Will did the same and then led the way out of the room, leaving the door open for Winston. 

“Is the house still a mess?” Will asked, heading downstairs. 

“We might differ on the meaning of that word,” Hannibal reached out and stopped the younger man. “About tomorrow-” 

“-Don’t start!” Will said quickly, holding up a finger. “You agreed.” 

“Am I not allowed to question my own decisions?” 

“No,” Will grinned, and stood on his toes to kiss him since he was a whole step lower than Hannibal at the moment. “Who knows what decisions you’ll start second guessing next.” 

*** 

Hannibal swallowed nervously. His hands started to sweat and he wiped them on his thick overcoat. He evened out his breathing and called on every trick of the trade to slow his heart rate. This is really unlike him but what he’s about to do is even more unlike himself.

Hanni took his hand, squeezing it. “Ok, papa?” 

Hannibal gave the boy a thin smile, and tried not to be offended by the sound of his lover’s laughter. Will placed a hand over his shoulder and pulled him close. 

“You’re having second thoughts, aren’t you?” Will asked.

“I might be,” Hannibal told him, with a raised brow and exasperation clear on his face. 

“Are you?” Will challenged. 

Hannibal looked down at his son. Rosy round cheeks from the winter chill, a small button nose and wild curls that are always too long. He couldn’t bear the thought of disappointing the boy after they had already made a commitment to him. 

“No,” Hannibal breathed out with a touch of finality. “No, we’re doing this.” 

Will’s eyes softened and he opened the door. 

Hannibal took a deep breath and walked in. 

Will shook his head, smiling, as Hannibal passed him with a look of the condemned. 

The inside smelled of cleaning products and animals. The barks were high pitched, only drowned out by the sound of the workers cleaning and chatting. 

“Will, please reconsider the breeder in Pennsylvania,” Hannibal turned to the younger man. 

“Hannibal, I’m not getting a dog from breeder when there are so many dogs that need a good home.”

“Those dogs need a home too,” Hannibal said under his breath as a middle aged, short woman came over to shake their hands. 

“Mr. Graham, it’s so good to see you!” she said and Hannibal thought her smile was a bit flirtatious as she looked Will over discreetly. “I must say that we have missed you around here.”

“Sorry,” Will shrugged. “I wish I had the time. This is my fiancé, Hannibal and our son, Junior.” 

“Hello there,” she smiled at Hanni. “I’m Patty. Are you getting your first dog?” 

“I have Winston,” Hanni told her. “He’s my fiend and I’m his friend but he was daddy’s dog before I was a baby and I want a puppy too.” 

“Think you can take care of it?” 

“Yes, I’m five years old and one days.” 

“Well, happy belated birthday,” she said him with a wide smile and asked them to fallow her to the kennels. “We get a lot of new arrivals this time of year. A lot people buy pets as presents for family members that are just unable to take care of them.” 

They walked through rows of dogs, and Hannibal couldn’t hold Will back from stopping and kneeling down to give every pooch some love. Hanni ran ahead of them, eyes wide, as he moved from cage to cage.

Hannibal scowled. He couldn’t imagine that he had let Will talk him into this. Winston he could understand. Winston had been with Will before Hannibal came into his life, even if it was for a few days. Now, Hannibal was going to be sharing a house with two dogs.

“Have I mentioned how wonderful you for allowing this?” Will said, smiling up at the doctor. 

Hannibal only frowned in reply. 

“Seriously, thank you,” Will said as he stood back up, slipping his hand into Hannibal’s and squeezing it. “This will be a good thing. You’ll see.” 

Hannibal almost believed him. 

Then Hanni called them over. Inside the cage was a tan and black German Shepherd puppy that tried to lick the boy’s fingers through the chain link fence. Puppy was a term that applied only to her age. Clearly young, the dog had to be at least forty pounds, with ears and paws still much too large for its body. 

“No, Hanni,” Hannibal shook his head. “He is going to grow to be much too large.” 

“But papa, I love him,” Hanni said, patting his nose as the puppy pressed against the fence. “Oh, Papa, look! He likes me!” 

Hannibal watched the dog jump up to stand against the fence in an attempt to lick Hanni’s face. 

Hannibal learned that he was actually a she and that Hanni inherited Will’s powers of persuasion. 

***

Darcy, was five months old, weighed forty-four pounds and loved having her belly scratched. Hanni insisted that they could not possibly change her name. It was the only thing that belonged to her and he wouldn’t take that away. 

Darcy loved Hanni, and barely let him out of her sight but she also liked to chew on legs of furniture, wires and anything else left on the floor. She was teething, Will had informed him, and it wasn’t her fault. 

As far as Hannibal was concerned, they were all to blame. 

“Do you know how much these shoes cost?” Hannibal asked, holding up pair of what was once a very expensive and exclusive 100th anniversary edition of a brand that Will never heard of. 

“I’m sorry,” Will gave a sheepish shrug. More than half a decade of living with the man and he could barely tell Armani from something that came from Macys. 

“Sorry?” Hannibal shook his head. “You told me that the dog would not be any trouble!”

“She’s a puppy,” Will gathered his papers, not really planning to spend the whole night soothing a grown man over a pair of shoes. “She’s going to grow out of it in a few months.” 

“In a few months she will have gone through all my clothes,” Hannibal growled, resisting the urge to throw his ruined shoes at the younger man. 

“Is that really bad?” Will grinned up as he placed his things in his satchel. “You get to go shopping!” 

“Please don’t treat me like I’m some sort of young housewife that could be placated with the idea of new, shiny things,” Hannibal’s eyes narrowed and his lip twitched into a snarl. 

“I‘m sorry, you’re right,” Will tried his best not to laugh. “You don’t need a reason to go shopping, darling.” 

***

The Lecter-Graham house had not been silent in … well, over five years now. But that was nothing compared to their son running through the house with an over grown puppy hot on his heels. 

“Hanni, no running!” Hannibal wasn’t happy at having to raise his voice but he was elbow deep in dinner preparation and didn’t want the boy sliding on the wooden floor. Or the dog scratching it up with her nails that could be heard clicking as she ran, and Will really was going to pay if the dog scratched up the Calamander wood. 

A few moments later the running continued and Hannibal grabbed a towel, wiping his hands as he went to find the boy. Before he could find the little trouble makers, he heard a loud crash, and found himself breaking his own rule about running in the house.

Hannibal found his son and their puppy, next to a broken lamp. The doctor scooped the boy away from the broken glass, and used his long leg to discourage the puppy from getting too curious. 

“What happened?” Hannibal asked, setting the boy on his feet far from the mess. 

Hanni shot the dog a nervous look, before making eye contact. “I did it. I was running and I hit the stand.” 

Hannibal frowned. He could tell his son was lying. It was with the very best intentions, completely selfless, but still a lie. 

“Get the broom and dustpan,” Hannibal instructed and picked up the dog. “Wait for me right here and don’t go next to the mess.” 

“Where are you taking Darcy?” 

“Outside, we don’t want her getting hurt.” 

When he returned, Hanni was waiting where he had been instructed to wait, with the cleaning supplies. Hannibal swept the floor and Hanni held the dustpan. Between the two of them the job didn’t take long, and except for a small scratch where the lamp had hit the hardwood floor, no trace was left of the mess. The doctor was not pleased about that but could let it go. He would need to fix it but it wouldn’t be too much trouble. There was something else he couldn’t let go that easily. 

Hannibal kneeled on the floor and called the boy over. “What happened to the lamp?” he asked again. 

“It fell,” Hanni looked away.

“Obviously,” the doctor smiled. “How?”

“I knocked it over. I’m sorry.” 

“Even small lies are lies and once you get used to those, the large ones come easier,” Hannibal explained, adopting a more serious look as he spoke. “Are you worried that I’ll be upset with Darcy if I know the truth?” 

“How did you know?” the boy pouted at him. 

“It’s a papa thing,” Hannibal smiled. “I can’t say I won’t be upset by the truth but please don’t lie to me.”

“I didn’t want Darcy to get in trouble,” Hanni explained.

“I know, sweet boy,” Hannibal cupped the boy’s face in one large hand. “But she’s your dog and I’m your papa.” 

“I know,” the boy frowned because that was obvious. “I’m sorry I lied. Can I play outside with Darcy?” 

“Yes, go on, and take Winston,” Hannibal said, and sent the boy on his way with a less than gentle pat on the behind. “Put on a jacket!” 

Winston had been sitting quietly in the corner, knowing that when things got noisy, he better stay quite so everyone would know he was innocent. Now he shared a tired look with Hannibal and fallowed the boy to the backyard.

Hannibal returned to the kitchen looking out into the backyard every few minutes. 

Outside, Darcy jumped on Hanni, causing the boy to fall. He rolled around in the dirt and laughed as the puppy yelped and jumped around him. 

The toll was not in Darcy’s favor but it didn’t seem like anyone cared what he thought. 

***

Darcy was happily munching away on a bully stick not too far from the fireplace. Will and Hannibal set on opposite ends of the couch. Hannibal with his legs stretched out in one of his famous sprawls, and Will with his legs tucked in under himself. Both had work to do, and sat in comfortable silence as they tried to finish up. 

Slowly Hannibal became aware that he was being watched. 

“Yes?” he asked, looking over the edge of his notebook. 

“Hmm?” Will blinked, realizing he had been staring. “Oh, I was just thinking…”

“Do share,” Hannibal smiled, encouragingly. 

“Your cheekbones are ridiculous,” Will said, trying to hold back a smile. 

“Excuse me?” Hannibal raised an eyebrow.

“Preposterous,” Will said and slid up the couch to lean over him. “A man of your brilliance should not be this good looking. It’s unfair to the rest of us.”

“You’re one to talk,” Hannibal smiled and set up straight to pull the younger man into his lap. His arms went around Will and pulled him close. “I haven’t been able to take my eyes off of you since that day in Jack’s office.” 

“Really?” Will smirked. “Because I thought you were a pretentious snob and I couldn’t get away from you fast enough.”

“Is that so?” Hannibal laughed as if he didn’t know that already and nipped at Will’s lower lip. “And now?” 

“Well, maybe not a snob but you’re still kind of pret-” Will laughed as his words were cut off when Hannibal flipped him on to his back and leaned over him, still between his legs, gorgeous and menacing. 

One moment Hannibal was leaning in towards Will, ready to take what he wanted and the next time he was jumping away, trying to shake off the dog that was attached onto his ankle. 

“Darcy, no! Bad!” Will yelled and moved to grab the puppy once Hannibal managed to get her off. “That’s a bad girl. You’re going in the cage.”

“She’s going to the pound,” Hannibal muttered pulling his sock off to see the bloody bite mark. 

“She just thought you were trying hurting me,” Will said, and had the nerve to smile as he locked her away. 

“That somehow fails to ease the pain,” Hannibal said as he made his way to his desk and removed a small first aid kit. 

“It’s just a flesh wound,” Will said, coming over and inspecting the damage. “They have very sharp baby teeth.” 

Hannibal only responded with a glare as he removed the blood and cleaned the wound with alcohol rub.

“Look, it’s barely bleeding now,” Will tried to smile. “We’ve gotten hurt worse fooling around behind my old place.” 

“I was referring to my pants! They are ruined,” Hannibal managed to say through gritted teeth as he showed the triangle tears where Darcy had grabbed and pulled. 

“I’m sure no one will …” Will tapered off when he saw the look on the other’s face. 

“You better get that dog under control,” Hannibal glared and stood. “I will not be assaulted every time I touch you.” 

“She’s a puppy,” Will sighed, knowing how hard this was for the older man. “It won’t be like this for much longer.” 

Hannibal did not look even marginally more at ease as he left the room.

***

“What do you think you’re doing?” 

Hanni froze instantly, shocked by his papa’s tone, as well the sudden appearance. 

“Well?” Hannibal asked, hands on his hips as he looked down at the boy, and the small muddy dog that continued to dig. 

There were at least two other holes that Hannibal could see, each about a foot deep. The culprits set at his feet, and only one had managed to look slightly guilty. The muddy little boy scrambled to his feet and pulled Darcy away from her project. 

“We were playing,” Hanni told him, as he stood shifting from foot to foot with uncertainty. 

“What you were doing is making a mess of our backyard, as well as yourselves,” Hannibal scooped up the boy in one arm and the dog in the other to avoid muddy footprints throughout the house. “You know better than to dig up holes. Someone might get hurt.” 

Hannibal carried them into the bathroom and put them in the bathtub to contain the mess. 

“Take off your clothes,” Hannibal instructed. 

“Are we going to take a bath together?” Hanni asked, sounding very excited by the idea as he pulled his sweater off. 

“No,” Hannibal said sternly, making the boy pout. 

Hanni had mostly made a mess of his clothes, so once his hands and face were washed, he was sent to get dressed. Hannibal wiped Darcy’s paws with a wet towel and told her she was a very naughty girl. Now he had to clean the tub and fill up the holes in the backyard. Very naughty, indeed. 

The doctor put the dog in the cage, who gave him a pitiful whine but he was not moved. 

“Papa?” Hanni sounded uncertain as he stood in the bathroom doorway while Hannibal cleaned up the mess they had made. “Is Darcy in a timeout?”

“Yes, she is.” 

“Because it was naughty to dig up the yard?” 

“Yes, it was,” Hannibal said as he rose and washed his hands. 

“Papa?” Hanni came over to lean against the sink.

“Yes, Hanni?” 

“Can I have a timeout too?” 

“You want a timeout?” Hannibal raised a brow. 

“With Darcy,” Hanni clarified. 

Hannibal sighed and shook his head at the idea of his son asking to be punished. “All right, go on.” 

A few minutes later, Will was walking by and paused in the door way as saw their puppy in her cage and a quiet little boy beside it. 

“We’re in a timeout,” Hanni explained when Will came over. 

“Really?” Will tried not to smile as he kneeled. “What did you two do?” 

“We were naughty. We dug holes in the backyard and got all muddy.” 

“Oh, well that was naughty,” Will nodded. 

Hanni gave a serious nod, and Will reached over to give him a kiss before he went to find his lover. 

“I just came across two very sorry looking mischief makers,” Will said as he joined Hannibal in the kitchen. 

“Don’t let them fool you,” Hannibal said much too seriously for it to be genuine. “They’re very clever.” 

“Maybe they were looking for the chest that contained the soul of Koschei The Deathless,” Will laughed, as he remembered the stories Hannibal had told him from his youth and the holes he had dug till his father made him stop.

“Watch the sass young man,” Hannibal warned playfully. “Or you find yourself in a timeout as well.” 

Will chuckled at the thought of himself sinking down the floor next to his son and the puppy. “I’ll be good.” 

“You really are,” Hannibal said, wrapping his arms around the younger man and pulling him into a kiss. 

Will whined when Hannibal pulled away, but relented when the doctor promised to return once their little ones were set free. 

***

“Papa, I want to hold Darcy,” Hanni whined as they walked around their block. 

“You’re holding Winston,” Hannibal pointed out. 

“But I want Darcy!” 

“Hush, Winston is going to hear you,” Hannibal told him instead of asking him to lower his voice.

Winston was older and well behaved. Darcy was still excited by all the new smells and tugged on the leash as she moved randomly from spot to spot. 

“I can walk them both,” Hanni said, gentler this time but still whining. 

“Then there’ll be no one for me to walk.”

“You can walk me,” the boy smiled up at him.

“I don’t have a leash for you,” Hannibal let go of the boy’s hand to tickle his neck with his index finger. “Maybe I’ll use my tie.” 

“Yea!” Hanni giggled, and squirmed but didn’t pull away. 

Hannibal’s phone went off and he winked down at the boy as he reached for it. 

“Hey, I’m on my way home,” Will’s voice never failed to make him smile. “Do you need me stop anywhere?” 

“We are well stocked and missing you terribly,” Hannibal said, pleased when his lover’s speaker picked up a soft chuckle. 

Before Will could respond, a car passed by and Darcy bolted after it with all the power of a German Shepherd puppy. Hannibal, caught off guard, fell to his knees, but managed to hold on to the leash. The phone went flying, falling with a tell-tale crack, and slid across the sidewalk. 

“Papa!” Hanni screamed, terrified at the thought that his papa might be hurt. 

“I’m all right,” Hannibal reassured him, and hid a wince as he stood up. 

Hanni ran to get the phone as the older man frowned down at his pants. They were dirty but not ripped. 

“Papa fell.” Hannibal heard their son talk into the phone. “Darcy pulled him.”

Hannibal held out his hand to take the phone. 

“What happened?” Will was asking, when Hannibal held the phone up. The screen was cracked but still functional. 

“Your dog tried herding a car,” Hannibal practically growled. 

“Oh,” Will said and Hannibal can imagine the other man biting his lip as he tried to think of what to say. “Are you ok?”

“You better fix this dog, or I will,” Hannibal snapped and hung up the phone. 

“Darcy isn’t broken,” Hanni said, eyes suddenly filled to with unshed tears. “You’re not going to send her away, are you?” 

“Come along,” Hannibal said, placing a guiding hand on the back of his son’s head as he steered him towards home. 

“Papa, I love Darcy.”

“I know,” Hannibal sighed. 

“I love you too,” Hanni said, reassuring him. 

Hannibal smiled in spite of his anger. The boy never failed to comfort him.

***

“I don’t see why I had to come,” Hannibal made his unhappiness clear.

“You want me to look after two dogs and a kid on my own?” Will asked as he led a very excited Darcy into the dog park. 

“I have complete and utter faith in you,” Hannibal stated and he was not being sarcastic. 

“It’s been a long week,” Will admitted. “I just want us all together.” 

Hannibal smiled, even if it was a bit forced and walked closer to the younger man. He hoped that the pup would tire herself out. Maybe the boy as well, and then he would have Will all to himself. 

An hour in the dog park was worth it.

They didn’t last an hour. 

About half an hour after they got there, a large Boxer came to play with Hanni and the small pack he had been entertaining with a game of fetch. The boy was a hit at the dog park. He gave the owners a chance to relax as he included all the dogs in his games with the never ending energy of a child. 

The Boxer, large but very friendly, made the mistake of running towards Hanni. He had been only interested in the ball in Hanni’s hand but Darcy only saw a large charging dog and threw herself at it. There was an unfriendly growl coming from her as she dragged the boxer down by the collar. 

Will rushed over to pull Darcy off while the owner of the Boxers ran to pull his dog away and check it for injuries. Hannibal checked to make sure their son was okay, ignoring both men and their dogs. 

“Sorry about that,” Will apologized, holding Darcy back.

“No worries, man,” the man shook his head. His dog was fine, Darcy hadn’t touch it, only biting into the collar. “She’s a German Shepherd. That’s what they do.” 

Will expected a rude snort from Hannibal at the comment but none came. He expected to be told off or at the very least be nagged as they left the park and made their way to the car. Nothing. 

On the drive, Will kept glancing over, till he caught the other man’s eye.

“What is it?” Hannibal asked. 

“You aren’t upset?” Will sounded confused. 

“No,” Hannibal sighed. “She was trying to protect Hanni. What more could I ask for?” 

Will smiled but it quickly turned to a mocking glare. 

“She bit you trying to protect me,” Will reminded him. “Why weren’t you thrilled about her protecting me?” 

“Because, my good Will,” Hannibal said, waiting to catch the other’s eye before continuing. “In our house I’m the alpha.” 

Will smiled and licked his lips. “Prove it.” 

“Daddy, what’s an alpha?” Hanni yelled from the backseat, before his papa could reply. 

“Oh, no, that question is definitely a papa question” Will grinned at the older man. 

Hannibal licked his lips and sighed. They were going to have to start talking in code. 

“Alpha, my sweet boy, is the beginning,” Hannibal said, gritting his teeth a little. “And that gets to be papa because I’m the oldest.” 

Will grinned and looked away. Though not always dominant, with Will at least, Hannibal was definitely assertive and age had little to do with it. It was his sharp mind, and sharper teeth that kept their pack safe. 

He caught Hannibal’s eye and kissed the engagement band on his finger in a playful, though no less sincere, show of loyalty to his alpha. 

Darcy stretched out in the back, head resting on her paws, happy and content that the pack that now belonged to her was safe. Thanks to her.

**Author's Note:**

> My puppy is two now, everything is covered in dog hair, she won't let anyone within ten feet of me and I still love her. 
> 
> I love hearing from everyone! Thanks for all the love. I can't believe this all started with one prompt and I don't know if they ever saw what they created.


End file.
